romance

“No! I won’t allow it,” said the editor of my novel, “Kill the Preacher Man”. (Not yet published.) “I write romance novels, and love doesn’t happen that fast,” she went on to say. I considered her chastising comments and thought, I’m not writing a romance novel! Besides, over my many years, I have heard several stories where one, or the other of a married couple knew early on they had met their mate. I myself have fallen in love with a woman at first sight. Twice! The second one, I married.

My current wife, I first saw a postage size photo of her, and said, “Wow! Who is that?” I wanted to click on her profile first and find out more about her. I know now, what I saw that Friday afternoon, was the love of God in her. I have written about it before in a post titled, “The April Affect”. God’s love is so strong in her that people who have never met her are attracted to her. Especially children.

So if it is possible to fall in love with someone at first sight, then shouldn’t it be possible to fall in love with God at first sight? After all, we are made in his image. Now not everyone acts like God, but that’s the individual’s fault, not Gods.

Yes, there are some that are crazy about God right after they meet him. They accept his free gift of salvation and feel instant relief from the burden of sin, and they go around telling everybody about their new love.

For others, it seems as if their love of God grows as the relationship grows. As they learn, or discover the benefits of being in a relationship with God they appreciate and their love for him grows.

A popular church proclaims, “For whoever finds God, finds life.” I like to say, “For whoever finds God, finds love.”

Believe it or not, after my divorce, when it came to meeting a woman to potentially marry, I used to ask God to send her to my door and have her say, “Hi. I’m God’s woman for you.” In turn, I would say, “Great. Let me get my coat.” I was living in the Chicago area back then and it is cold 9 months out of the year. Guess what? It never happened. I didn’t like all of the effort it took to date after divorce, and I wasn’t real sure I even wanted to remarry, but one thing I did know, if God wanted to lead me that way He could have.

My approach was kind of like praying for money, but not going out and looking for a job. I used to tell my concerned friends, “Hey, I’m not looking for a wife, but my eyes aren’t closed either.”

One sure way to receive direction from God is to be moving. You can’t steer a car if it’s not rolling. With that said, you don’t stop praying while you are in motion. God can certainly open and close doors, or lead you to someone who knows someone who God can use to meet your need, or desire.

I know of a single woman who is looking for a mate. She keeps doing it her way, which seems as if she takes the first man to message her, and she gets involved in another long distance relationship that eventually ends badly. After a few days of hurt, and anger she’s back at it again. The problem is this; her expiration date is approaching. I get the sense she is not focusing on God first, and trusting him to lead her. There is nothing wrong with saying, “No” to a man when you get a check in your spirit. God will give her the desires of her heart when the right man comes along. In the meantime, she can have intimacy with God.

It’s important to yield to the plans of God.

I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. Jer. 29:11 (MSG)

For six years, before my retirement, I planned on buying an RV, travel America, and write. That didn’t happen then, but I now see a chance where it may happen in the future. My wife likes to add this phrase after making plans of her own, “If God permits.” Not a bad way to live at all.

“for we walk by faith, not by sight [living our lives in a manner consistent with our confident belief in God’s promises]” 2 Cor. 5:7 (AMP)

It’s not easy walking with God, I get that, but it sure is exciting!

Whether you need direction for a spouse, a job, a place to live, what to say to someone who needs to hear from God, etc. choose to live in boldness. Don’t sit in your living room and wait for the answers to come to you, oh, and don’t expect a billboard along the highway either, but get up, get out, and move. Then trust the one who has the wheel of your life. You’ll enjoy the destination that much better!